


Nocturn Returns

by DivineWriting



Series: A New Perspective [1]
Category: Danny Phantom
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-02
Updated: 2019-02-02
Packaged: 2019-10-20 17:58:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,840
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17626952
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DivineWriting/pseuds/DivineWriting
Summary: After Nocturn's said defeat, Sam starts having very odd, very vivid dreams. As she attempts to interpret these nightly travels, she struggles with her feelings for her best friend, Danny. The discovery of Sam's new powers allows her and her friends to hunt down Nocturn and eliminate him once and for all.





	Nocturn Returns

**Author's Note:**

> First Fanfic I've written. Planning on doing some sequels!

I had too many thoughts racing through my head to enjoy the warm summer breeze brush against my cheeks and tickle my shoulders. I watched the sun disappear behind the lake, but I wasn’t mentally present to appreciate its beauty. We had just imprisoned a ghost who gets off by trapping his victims in their own dreams while “harvesting” their energy for his own growth. Pretty sick. 

I couldn’t stop thinking about the way my body tingled when Danny grabbed my hands earlier that day as he lead me into the belly of this beast. Each molecule of my body rearranged itself to allow me to do the impossible… literally get into the mind of a ghost. 

I relived the whole night, from when I woke up, to Danny collapsing onto my bed, to entrapping Nocturn into the thermos. Though what I really couldn’t stop thinking about was how much Danny had seen of the deep desires reflected in my dream. Too much. 

“What about you guys?” I heard Jazz’s voice suddenly ring in my ear. I jumped and gasped out of my own thoughts. 

“I don’t remember,” I shouted without thinking. I heard Danny mutter something similar in the same, caught-off-guard way as I had. My cheeks turned pink as I turned to Danny, feeling dumb as ever for my flustered reaction.

I felt a little relief when I watched a pink hue coat his ghostly cheeks, mirroring my same flustered state. Watching him react this way made me wonder what he had been dreaming as Nocturn was sucking his life force from his body.

“Dreams? Gateway to the subconscious? I don’t think so,” he added, trying to play it off cool. I automatically agreed with him as I tried to hide my rosy cheeks. But as I turned to him and caught his mesmerizing green eyes, the world seemed to disappear, and I forgot why I was so embarrassed in the first place. 

___________

 

“Hopefully we actually wake up tomorrow morning,” read a text from Danny. I unlocked my phone screen and the bright light was blinding compared to the pitch black shade of my bedroom. I winced a little, digging my face into my pillow, but once my eyes adjusted I formed my reply. 

“Lol I think I’d rather be stuck in my dream,” I typed, but then deleted it. I couldn’t help but smile at the way Danny had looked at me in my dream, the way the warmth of his body combated the coldness of the cafeteria seat as he sat down beside me. It felt so real. And so good. 

I burst out laughing when I remembered how Dash had gone ghost and my wondrous fantasy instantly became a terrifying nightmare. 

The whole thing was ridiculous, right? I mean, me wearing Danny’s letterman jacket? First of all, that tradition is SO dumb, second of all, I wouldn’t say something as cheesy as “but it’s yours, so that’s enough for me”. And even the attempt to kiss without the excuse of it being a “fake-out make-out” seems ludicrous. The way things are going, and knowing how stubborn both Danny and I tend to be, Dash becoming half-ghost seems much more likely than Danny ever wanting to kiss me. 

“I completely agree. See you tomorrow!” I typed and immediately pressed send so I wouldn’t be tempted to add anything else. I set my phone on the bedside table and laid on my back. I snuggled under the thick covers and stared into the darkness I happily call my room. However unlikely my dream had been, did it really reflect how I felt? Did I really want to be Danny’s girlfriend? I obviously love him, but am I in love with him? Was Nocturn right when he said dreams are the gateway to the subconscious?

I saw a glow come from the nightstand and realized it was my phone begging for attention. I checked the message from Danny and a fervor of happiness rolled over my body. 

“BTW, thanks for all your help today. I really couldn’t have done it without you. Goodnight, Sam. Sweet dreams ;)”

Shit. Maybe I am in love with him…

__________

The bright light and booming explosion made me fling my eyes open. The darkness confused me; did I just wake up from a second-long nightmare? But as I stared at the ceiling, another bright light illuminated my bedroom accompanied by a scream of terror sent me into panic. 

I threw the heavy sheets off my pale legs. I sprinted out the door, down the stairs, and into the street. I noticed bright pink goo flowing like lava down the streets of my quaint, rich-girl neighborhood. 

At first alarmed, I realized the goo was flowing slowly, like it knew nothing of time. As I began to investigate the source of this substance, I saw the sewage cap rattling on the ground five feet in front of me. I backed away slowly, expecting it to explode like a New York manhole, but instead the cover carefully slid to the side, a human hand controlling it. 

The next thing I witnessed made me fall to the concrete road in an aggressive bout of laughter.  
Danny emerged from the sewer… dressed as a GHOSTBUSTER! But it got better- Danny’s dad and Vlad Masters, yes, VLAD MASTERS, emerged behind him, wearing the same 1980s doofus ghost hunting costumes as Danny. 

“Sam, this is no time for laughter, we are under attack,” Danny scolded me, his tone so serious. But I couldn’t take him seriously, which made me laugh even more. As I wiped away my tears of amusement, I only saw darkness. It was followed by my mother’s nagging voice outside my bedroom door. She pounded on the wood, demanding me to get out of bed or else I’d be late for school. The piercing tone of my mother’s words made me sure I was actually awake. 

When I arrived at my locker before first period, Danny and Tucker were chatting like normal, unfortunately without Ghostbuster get-ups. However, I was glad to see things were back to normal. 

“Something strange in your neighborhood,” I heard Danny sing to himself quietly. Such a familiar tune… my ears perked up in interest. 

“Wait, what are you singing?” I interrupted him, pulling on his white shirt. I was slightly regretful of my impulse as I kind of enjoyed his adorable singing. 

“Nothing. I wasn’t singing?” Danny insisted nervously. I heard Tucker’s terrible vocals on the other side of me, “who you gonna call?” he hummed quietly, continuing Danny’s subtle performance. 

“What the fuck? Ya’ll are both singing the Ghostbuster’s theme song!” I exploded, making those around us snort tauntingly. 

“My dad watched that movie a good three times last night. I can’t get that damn song out of my head!” 

Alright, coincidence or not, it is still pretty weird that the most vivid dream I’ve ever had was related to this conversation. 

“Sam, you good?” Danny asked, resting his hand on my shoulder. 

Now I am, I thought, feeling his warm touch. He looked at me, almost reading how crazy my mind was at the moment. I assured him that I was, and we all moved on with our days at the ringing of the bell. 

________

After a long day of school, homework, ghost hunting, arguing with my mom, and kicking Danny and Tucker’s asses in Doomed II, I passed out onto my big, comfy bed. As my body sunk into the mattress, my mind sunk into REM.

I found myself moaning from pain. Wait-I wasn’t even in pain? I did feel my heart swell though, as I looked up to see Danny’s white hair, green eyes and that hella sexy videogame get-up he rocked after we dropped Technus into level 0. I felt him put his hand on my chest, but then he suddenly jumped with excitement when he realized that I was alive. He threw his fist into the air, yelling a celebratory “yes!” 

In fact, he was so excited to see me alive that he picked me up and squeezed me so tight that I could feel his racing heart against mine. His joy turned into determination as he released me from his grasp and gave me the run-down. 

“You and I are the only ones left to defeat the most powerful trio in the game… Tuckerlina.”

Tuckerlina? Alright Tucker you have definitely lost my respect.

We suddenly witnessed a giant wave of debris fill the air. Through the blurry distance, out walked three figures. I couldn’t help but groan with disgust when I saw Tucker approach with Valerie and Paulina in the gear Valerie wears when she hunts ghosts. 

My disgust and guard were lost when I felt lips press against mine. I discovered who had just groped my lips with theirs, and I found Danny’s face mere centimeters from mine, his soft white glove brushing back my hair. 

“Let’s go get em, babe!” Danny whispered to me in a voice so sexy it made my pants slightly moist. Can I have this dream every night?

A blast from what looked like Valerie snapped me out of my daydream. Uh- in a night dream? Daydream within a night dream? Whatever. 

Danny and I hopped and hurdled over lasers and obstacles, athletically avoiding every shot. We were reunited near a medieval-style set-up, complete with a sword wedged in a boulder ready to be plucked by its noble owner. 

“You good?” He said, dragging his hand down my back as we stood shoulder to shoulder. The goosebumps and pelvic tingling subsided as I watched a huge blast of light send Danny and I to the ground. I got up quickly, only to be stuck in a cage, bounded by electrical forces. 

“Damnit!” Danny yelled in frustration as he watched Tucker remove the sword from the boulder. Valerie and Paulina melted at Tucker’s feet as they witnessed their God hold the golden, glittering sword. First, Paulina took him in her arms and kissed him passionately. I guess they would be good together? But then Valerie stood up and made out with Tucker, showing the same amount of passion. Okay?...

But THEN, Valerie and Paulina held each other and kissed, falling to the floor passionately. I winced and squeezed my eyes closed, opening them to my dark bedroom. My bedside alarm yelled at me and I wasn’t even mad about it. Literally saved by the bell. 

“Sam, check out these upgrades,” Tucker said, shoving his laptop in my face. We were all- well, Danny and I- watching a movie in my basement. Tucker had been typing away at his keyboard the whole time. I guess I can’t judge his technology obsession too much. I mean, he already has a summer internship at PlayStation as a high school student… but then I remember last night’s dream and I completely lose respect again. 

“Fuck yeah, Tuck!” Danny chuckled as he gave the techno geek a high-five. 

“We’re looking at the same thing here, right?” I whistled with concern. 

“Yeah, Sam. Don’t judge. These are badass jumpsuits, and Val and Paulina are the best models!” Tucker argued pretentiously. 

“Are you going to team up with them and call yourselves Tuckerlina? Then expect them to worship the ground you stand on as you pull some sword from a rock Sir-Arthur style?” I teased, trying to hide how actually weirded out I was. 

“Wait… yeah. I haven’t even coded that yet. How did you know?” Tucker responded, taking back his laptop. 

“And your hoes are going to invite you to some kinky virtual threesome?” I added, just for shits and giggles.

“Heh, I don’t know where that part came from,” Tucker shrugged, his voice cracking with bullshit. I turned to Danny and he looked at me with his eyebrow raised skeptically. 

“I got it from you because I saw it in your dream!” I shouted, releasing all my built-up anxiety. 

“No way. If you were really in my dream, what was the color of my sword?” Tucker asked, his nose stuck up in the air. 

“Glittering gold,” I smirked, watching the two boys drop their jaws. 

“Let me get this straight. You can just like stroll into other people's’ dreams?” Tucker asked, scooting in closer to me with intrigue.

“Well not really. I mean when I go to sleep I just appear in someone’s dream. It’s not like I get to pick whose subconscious I invade.” I replied, of course with raging sass. 

“Since when? Since… uh… whose? How many dreams have you seen?” Danny rambled tensely. 

“Don’t worry Danny. I haven’t seen yours. Even though you invaded mine so that’s kinda not fair,” I found myself rambling too. I thought about what Danny had walked in on before scarring me with Dash Phantom. My face became red and I could feel myself blush. 

“I just saw Tucker’s and I think… your dads? The whole Ghostbusters thing yesterday, I think that was from his. Don’t ask me why, totally random.” I insisted, nonchalantly changing the subject. 

“Sounds about right. How did this happen?” Danny asked, looking me up and down. He even reached out to stroke my arm, searching for any abnormalities. Let’s just say his touch had a similar effect on me as it had in Tucker’s dream. 

Danny found my eyes, deep in thought, and quickly retracted his roaming hand. 

“Sorry” he hummed, turning his rosy cheeks away from my gaze. Okay Danny, now I really want to know what’s inside that head of yours.

_____________

No matter how much we pondered, discussed, argued, and snacked, we still couldn’t figure out the meaning of these dream voyages I’d been experiencing. Well, this thing started with dreams, maybe that’s where we can find the answer...

I woke up once again, feeling cracked wood under my hands. There were crates all around me. I was now able to distinguish between dreams and reality so I was able to just remain calm despite being stuck in a dark, musky warehouse. I heard an echo, a male voice, but I couldn’t locate its origin. 

As I filed through the crates and boxes and old pieces of wood piled on top of each other, I approached an opening. I squeezed though and gasped as I found Tucker, nearly squashed by an enormous Nocturn. Danny was helplessly restrained by the sleepwalkers, and I was at a loss of what to do. Before I could run to my death and try to save my two best friends, the large metal door slammed open. Jazz stood confidently in the entryway, her ginger hair blowing majestically in the wind. She had two ghost rays, one in each hand. She was ready to kick some ass, according to her Black Widow outfit and royal entrance. She made some cheesy insult and blasted Nocturn, giving him a run for his money before trapping him into the thermos. 

“Oh Jazz! You saved me!” Tucker wailed with appreciation, throwing his arms around her. She pulled him assertively towards her, planting a passionate kiss on his lips. Was I really in Tucker’s dream again? 

“It’s a uhhh…” Tucker squinted nervously.

“Mattress factory.” Jazz finished, her words seductive. She took Tucker’s hand flirtatiously and giggled as she led him into the mounds of mattresses and he joyfully followed. God knows what they were going to do in there. 

__________

“What’s up Sam? Whose dream did you creep on last night?” Tucker asked as he skipped down his front porch stairs towards me. 

“Unfortunately, yours. What is it with you and dreaming about women with sexy clothes and guns? And Jazz? That’s just weird!” 

“Hey, if I could control my dreams I wou-” Tucker started but paused in confusion, “wait… I didn’t dream about Jazz last night?” 

“You didn’t dream that she captured Nocturn and then y'all fucked on the mattresses?” I asked, extremely lost. 

“What? NO!” Tucker responded, disappointed that he had missed out on one hell of a night. 

“Then whose…” I wondered out loud but trailed off as we had already arrived at Danny’s place. 

“Oh God,” I whispered, shrinking with disgust. 

“Hey guys, find out anything about Nocturn?” Danny asked as he opened the front door. 

“Uh, I don’t know,” I replied, still in shock. I turned to Tucker, desperately searching for something else to say, but he had this sly smile on his face. 

“What’s going on?” Danny asked, crossing his arms. 

I gave him a cold, ‘don’t you dare’ look, but I knew he would just ignore me. Things were about to get real awkward. 

“Sam thinks she can find Nocturn by continuing her dream travels. The one she had last night clued that she was close,” Tucker explained. 

“How?” Danny wondered. 

“Jazz apparently saved me from a bunch of sleepwalkers,” Tucker insisted, pausing for a moment. “Then we uhhh… had a little fun…” 

Danny’s eyes glowed green with frustration. 

“Why would you even add that last part!” I scolded him, watching Danny get angry. Because it’s Tucker and he enjoys pissing people off, I remembered. 

“Chill Danny. It wasn’t my dream. I’m not the one with the dirty mind here,” Tucker assured him, and Danny reverted back to normal. 

“Then whose-” Danny began, but suddenly Jazz approached. “What’s up guys?” She asked in her usual friendly tone. 

Alright, now it’s officially awkward. 

___________________

 

“Nothing!” We all voiced simultaneously, and with the same, guilty tone. 

“Alright? Well if you need anything, I’ll be in my room working on homework. Don’t do anything stupid,” Jazz commanded as she walked into the house and shut the door behind her. 

“Don’t get any fucking ideas, dude,” Danny hissed at Tucker. 

“Danny, stop. It wasn’t even real. We have to focus!” I interrupted their alpha-off. 

“Fine, what’s the plan?” Danny asked. 

“Well, looks like what I’ve been doing has gotten me closer. I just need to keep tracking him… through you guys. It’s just not very efficient. It won’t be much longer until he returns. We don’t have much time. We need to figure out whose dreams he’s disturbing,” I insisted urgently. 

“Well he’s probably looming in Danny’s dreams. I mean, Danny has more energy than any of us, he is half ghost! And Nocturn is probably feeding off that energy to get stronger. Plus, he probably wouldn’t mind a little revenge.” Tucker explained. 

“Shit, Tucker. I think you’re right,” I said, regrettingly feeding his ego. 

“That’s why I’m the smart one,” he winked with a cocky smile. 

“I can’t just keep randomly jumping from dream to dream. I need to be in Danny’s dream, like, tonight!” I said. 

“Would proximity help?” Danny added shyly. 

“What?” I asked.

“Are you insisting that you and Sam have a cuddle sesh tonight?” Tucker teased. We both blushed and played with our hair apprehensively.

“I guess it couldn’t hurt?” I shrugged. I noticed Danny’s relief when I didn’t express utter repulsion. In fact, I felt just the opposite. 

____________________

“If you want, I can grab a sleeping bag and you take my bed?” Danny offered, “I just don’t want to make you uncomfortable.”

“Danny,” I sighed, climbing into his bed, “it’s only weird if you make it weird.” I’ve been on Danny’s bed a million times before, but as I nestled in under the covers, it didn’t feel so commonplace. They were soft, warm, and smelled just like him. 

“Sorry I just… my dreams are pretty weird sometimes,” he chuckled, uneasy, running his hand through his hair. 

“Danny, we’re best friends. We’ve both seen weirder shit. Like Tucker’s dreams,” I smiled. He approached the bed, slowly climbing in next to me. 

“And you invaded my dream!” I playfully scorned, poking his chest, “but the joke’s on you because you had to endure that discomfort.”

“Pfff, endure? Well if that’s what you call it then I could endure that dream every night,” he smiled, rolling his eyes. He looked at me, almost forgetting I was lying next to him in his bed, and blushed. He turned away quickly, trying to escape the sexual tension between us.

We simultaneously slipped under the covers, each on the complete opposite sides of the bed, as close to the edge as possible. I was trying to play it cool, but to be honest, I was nervous too. Tucker, Danny and I had spent several nights together, whether it was studying late for exams or too exhausted from a ghost hunt. I didn’t think twice about it then. But now, now that I’m...you know... probably in love with him, it was different.

Something about secretly being in love with your best friend and not knowing how he feels back is way scarier than any ghost. 

I closed my eyes and my mind wandered as I felt like I was sinking into Danny’s mattress. I felt a brief moment of peace until a hand brushed against my shoulder. 

I twitched and my eyes flew open. I was on high alert and ready to take down whoever had just snuck up on me. I was ready to pounce, but the hand grazed my arm and then wrapped around my bare belly. I felt the warmth of a body as the hand pulled me in and the body rested perfectly against mine like a puzzle piece.

I felt a warm breath against my neck and the rhythm of his chest as he inhaled and exhaled, his heart racing with mine. I gazed across the room and as my eyes adjusted to the dark, I spotted a NASA poster hanging from the wall. 

There was no question about it. I was in Danny’s room. Sleeping in his bed. Alone with him. And he was spooning me. But that wasn’t the weirdest part. 

As his hand brushed against my bare stomach, the skin on my legs was caressed by the soft sheets of his bed. I looked down to find a pink, lacie thong barely covering the unexplored territory between my legs. 

I was incredibly confused. I wasn’t quite sure how i had gotten here. I remember spending the night with Danny but I was fully clothed and we were as far apart as the bed would allow. But now… he was holding onto me like a child holds onto his teddy bear. I couldn’t deny that I fully enjoyed it, I was just lost. 

I didn’t appreciate my chaotic state of mind. But maybe I should just enjoy it. Maybe I should just live in the moment and embrace his sweet touch and masculine protection. I should just indulge in the fact that I was half naked in his arms, even though I would never wear such gaudy underwear! Wait…

I would never wear a pink, lacie thong… No wonder I was confused, these weren’t the clothes I wore to bed. This wasn’t even… reality. This was Danny’s dream!

“Danny! Wake up!” I whispered while peeling Danny’s body off of me. As much as I took pleasure in his koala-like position, this definitely wasn’t the time… nor place. I shook his body aggressively and he let out a groan. 

“Sam, what is it babe?” He asked, sitting up and flicking on his bedside lamp. 

Whoa… babe? Did he know this was a dream?

“Danny, this will sound crazy, but you are dreaming right now, and we have to find Nocturn or else he’s going to-” 

“Shhhh, Sam. Just go back to sleep. We put Nocturn away a long time ago, remember?” He asked, grasping my shoulder with his warm, human hand. His touch felt so good, but it was my responsibility to find and trap this evil entity that still haunted our dreams. 

I twisted my head around and kissed the hand on my shoulder. I slipped out of the covers, looking frantically around the dark room for a light… or at least some pants. 

I managed to almost break my ankle on a flashlight but I was relieved to have found it. I also picked up a black skirt and pulled it on. 

I snuck through Danny’s house, impressed that it had been mapped out in such detail in his mind. I descended down the dark stairs and into the lab, searching for any clues that could lead me to this relentless specter. 

“Sam!” I heard behind me. I turned around and found Danny, running down the steps while simultaneously changing into his ghost form. 

“Danny, I-” I began, but he interrupted me. 

“Sam, I know this is just a dream. I know.” 

“How?” 

“I found an AP Calculus exam on my desk with a giant ‘A’ written across it, so I kinda figured,” he chuckled, floating towards me. 

“So, you’re really here, huh? Not just one of my brain’s neural firings that merely represent Sam? Like Sam Sam?” He asked, awkwardly keeping his distance. 

“Sam Sam,” I smiled, my eyes locked on his until the ground rumbled beneath our feet.  
A dark smoke filled the air which made our visions blurry. 

As I stood there, blinded, I felt cold fingers wrap around my neck. The fear struck me and I became paralyzed, nauseated by the corpse-like presence upon me. 

When I was able to see again, I found Nocturn. He had the same ugly-ass face but it seemed to be wrinkled like an old man. His body was boney and decaying; it was terrifying. 

He was still extremely strong, however. His cartilaginous hand suffocated me and put me on the verge of losing consciousness. All of a sudden, I crashed to the floor and watched Nocturn fly across the lab and break a couple beakers on the way.

Danny flew over to me to see if I was okay, but before we could convene, Nocturn rose once again and charged at us. When I looked down, I noticed a ray gun of some sort in my lap that hadn’t been there before. I reflexively picked it up and aimed it at Nocturn. The energy that escaped it made him collapse to the ground. As I held the gun, I searched for other weapons to use. 

“Danny, where did you get this?” I asked, pointing to the shooter in my hand. 

“I don’t know. It was the first weapon that came to mind…” he shouted as he beamed energy at the enemy before us, “I guess it just appeared somehow?” He continued while multitasking. 

Wait. That was it! The pink lacie thong, the ray gun. If I was subject to Danny’s control inside his dream, so was Nocturn. 

“Danny! This is your dream. You control what happens!” I announced to the boy amidst battle.

“Sam… I don’t think-” another blast- “it’s that easy!” Another blast cacme at him, sending him crashing against the brick wall. I approached him, slightly pissed at his stubborn unwillingness to listen. 

“Danny.” I said, my voice stern and serious. I lifted up my black skirt, revealing my pale, bare legs and the underwear I was wearing. 

“Would I ever FUCKING wear a pink lacie thong?!” I stared him down, already knowing he would give me shit for it later. 

“Fuck. You’re right! This is my dream!” He said, peeling himself off the floor. He stomped up to the weakened spirit, still recovering from the blow. 

“This is the last time you will be interrupting something… uh… important,” he said awkwardly, growing a ball of energy in his hands. When it enlarged to half the size of himself, he launched it at the crippled ghost. 

Black ashes exploded in the air, disintegrating into nothing. Nocturn was officially extinguished. 

“What was he interrupting?” I asked, approaching the smokey-handed boy. 

“Oh that? Pff, that was just me being cocky and talking shit. You know, the whole exchange witty banter nonsense and whatnot,” he babbled as his cheeks turned red. It was kind of an ego boost to know he could still get flustered around me even in the realm of the subconscious. I just laughed and placed a friendly hand on his shoulder, “Don’t hurt yourself.”

He smiled shyly as he gazed into my eyes. 

“So how do we get out of here?” He asked, looking around the lab. 

“Same way we got in, I guess. Go back to sleep,” I insisted, making my way past him and up the stairs of the lab. 

“Will that work?” He asked, following me. 

“Have you never tried to escape a dream before?” I asked. We swiveled through the eerily quiet hallways and back up to his room. 

“Well, most of my dreams are like how this one began. So no,” he smirked, climbing into bed. 

As I flopped in behind him, I nuzzled up against his chest. He kissed my forehead and wrapped his arms around me. I savored the moment because I know when I usually force myself out of my dreams this way, I never remember them upon awakening. With this in mind, I whispered to the boy beside me confidently, “I love you, Danny.”


End file.
